The Sure Shots Flyball Blog

The Art of Calling Passes

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 15:17:38 -0500

When joining a Flyball club there are many roles to choose from to pitch
in. The glory seekers jump in the lane with both feet handling and
training the dogs. We heap praise on others who are doing the heavy
lifting hauling mats, lugging the box and setting up jumps. The social
coordinators are most content to make tasty snacks for all to partake at
tournaments. My niche seems to be in information technology so to speak.
That's where the scribes, schedule and record keepers and pass callers
are found. In this blog entry, I'll do what I can to share some
techniques that work for me as Sure Shots club pass caller. By no means
is this an end all, be all directive. If you have other techniques that
work for you, please let me know. I'm always looking for new ways to
improve what I do too. My email is: mike@dallasknights.com

* Find a camera that you can work with: pass calling by the naked eye
has never come easily for me. The dogs are running way too fast to make
an accurate pass length determination. That's why I depend on my digital
camera. I spent over an hour and a half at my local chain electronics
store testing out cameras one day. I am absolutely sure they were ready
to kick me out the door by the time I was done. I was oh, in a word,
picky. Not because I was looking for the finest in optical quality or I
was counting the number of Megapixels. I was testing for three things:
What do the movies look like, how quickly could I go from recording to
playing mode, how easily was it to stop the action, then move the images
forwards/backwards. I finally settled on the Olympus FE-340 because it
did all of the above and also fit into my pocket neatly with room to
spare. If you have a camera that works well for you, please let me know.

* Make sure you have a large, empty memory card a charged battery and a
battery charger. An extra memory card and back up battery is highly
advisable. These little cameras use memory and batteries like it's
nobody's business. Have the extra memory card and battery on your
person just in case you need to make a quick change between heats.

* I line up at the 1 foot line and shoot over the head of the line
judge. The camera is set as wide angle as possible to be able to view
the line calling hash marks as well as a couple of feet on the "early"
side of the start/finish line. I found if I line up right on the
start/finish line, the photoelectric equipment obscures the camera's
view of the line itself making it more difficult to accurately measure
the pass.

* I make a short movie of every heat, but because my information is
extremely time sensitive, not every part of every heat. For example,
most times, I just shoot the passes, not the start or the finish of each
heat. I usually hit the record button either when the start dog hits the
box or has already made his turn and is headed for his first jump. The
more time you record, the more time you have to sift through to get to
the passes. If you time this one right, you will be able to get your
first pass measured almost immediately after shooting.

* Stop the recording just after the last pass has taken place. Go into
play mode immediately and check the first pass by pausing the action and
slowly moving the image forwards and backwards until you can clearly see
where both dogs are at the time the dog's nose coming back from the box
crosses the start/finish line. To save time, this means you need to
start the process while the last dog is still racing. The more time you
save, the more time the handlers have to make pass corrections or
adjustments. Commit this length to memory and do not forget it.

* After you have the first pass called, start walking up the lane
towards the handlers as soon as the heat has finished. As you are
walking, keep playing your recording and measure the second and third
passes for the heat that just took place. By the time you reach the
handlers, you'll have all three passes called and the information at the
ready. This technique also saves a lot of time. (I sure hope you can
walk and chew gum at the same time...) Did you remember the length of
the first pass while you were doing all this walking/viewing
multitasking? I sure hope so!

* There is usually handler/canine bedlam in the lane after the heat.
Handlers tugging and rewarding dogs; incessant barking; the race
official is trying to reset the lanes for the next heat, etc. As pass
caller you need to get the handlers' attentions quickly and make sure
everyone has the pass length information they need. You could either
tell the team captain the pass call lengths to relay to the team or
loudly announce the lengths at once to the entire team. The latter is
most efficient and the one I use most, even though it forces me to yell
to be heard above the din. Make sure the handlers acknowledge that they
have received the information. It does them no good if they didn't
hear/understand/internalize it.

* If the pass is so wide that the camera couldn't see it all, just call
it "wide". If the pass was early, hopefully you were in a position to
estimate how early it was. Was it more than a couple of feet or was it a
matter of inches?

* After you're done giving pass lengths to the handlers, tell your
scribe the pass lengths for your team records. It's a good idea to
position the scribe fairly close you for this.

* Did you just buy a new camera and you're learning how to use it?
Great! Practice all you can to familiarize yourself with its operation
prior to the tournament. Do not wait for the tournament itself or you
will be all thumbs your first several heats.

* In the course of pass calling the last few tournaments, I've started
to develop my own set of slang terms based on the combination of pass
lengths:

1-1-1 "Aces High"
2-1-2 "Manhattan" (NYC Area Code is 212)
2-1-4 "Dallas" (Dallas Area Code is 214)
2-2-2 "Deuces Wild"
2-W-W "Redneck Couple" (Two in a double wide)
3-1-2 "Chicago" (Chicago Area Code is 312)
3-W-W "Redneck Threesome" (Three in a double wide)
4-1-1 "Information"
6-6-6 "Satan's Passes"

Warning! You might want to stick to just giving out the numbers as these
terms can be obscure and confusing.

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What am I teaching?

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 17:01:20 -0500

The above picture is from the Aflac Outdoor Games in Georgia last month.
Rude Dogs, RPM, Gamblers, Hyperflight and the tiny Sure Shots were invited
to compete in this exhibition. It was an exhibition only, not a sanctioned event,
but you wouldn’t have known it by the fierce competition. Congrats to RPM
for taking first place. We had a great time and it was an honor for us to be
invited to compete with these other great clubs. Now on with the article....

What am I teaching?

Have you ever wondered why a dog does something? Obviously, behaviors are shaped and, as the trainer, you hope to shape desired behaviors.

Are you training the behaviors that you think you are training? Many times someone will be dissatisfied with the performance of a dog and not realize that they actually shaped a less than desirable behavior.

No matter what training styles you use to train your flyball dog, you should, ultimately, pay attention to the details, and NOT just while at flyball practice. What you teach a dog outside of practice is, in some ways, more important. That is where you develop continuity. Do you yell at your dog for not coming to you in flyball, but let him get away with running off at home? Do you demand the dog drop the ball for the tug in the lanes, but allow him to chose which reward he has at home? Do you want him to come to you instead of chase other dogs in flyball, but let him chase his house mates or romp in the park with other dogs and not have a “call off” command? We play flyball for fun, and most dogs enjoy running flyball. They don't know it is any different from playing Frisbee with friends or other fun activities you do with your pet. What they do know is that the rules are different in the lane, and they get confused.

We are learning this with one of our dogs now. I thought he knew to bring the ball back, but he didn't. He knew that the ball needed to be part of the game, but, because we rewarded inconsistently, he never realized he HAD to bring it back. Training has taken a step back for him, but a GIANT step ahead for me. I am reminded that every time I interact with my dog one of us is learning something, or pushing some envelop. Occasionally we have to remind the dogs that the rules still apply, or they will remind us that they don't think the rules still exist. This is difficult, especially if you have multiple dogs, but each dog deserves to be trained and know what is expected of him.

So, it's not just dogs that need to be reminded of training issues and to be black and white—trainers do too. We need to remember that every interaction is a training moment and to stay “black and white”. Gray areas confuse humans and dogs alike.

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Picking a Puppy

Mon, 5 May 2008 12:18:43 -0500

Sonya and I just returned from Canada with our sixth puppy together.
Little Sly comes from Moy Hall Farm in Caledonia, Ontario. It was a
great experience and we’re really happy with our baby.

Many people have asked how to pick a puppy, and like any aspect of
Flyball, there are many different techniques. We’ve been happy with
all of the puppies we picked. All six have been bred for Flyball.
We love rescues, and have a couple, and we certainly do not discourage
anyone from adopting a rescue. Many of the fastest dogs are rescues.
Buying a good quality bred-for-Flyball dog only increases your
chances of having a really fast dog, it doesn’t guarantee it.
We feel that we are going to commit to our puppies for life,
so we buy the top quality puppies in hopes that they will live
long, healthy lives and have a successful Flyball career.
If you choose to go this route, here is some advice.

First, decide that you are ready to get a bred-for-Flyball dog, in fact,
decide a year in advance. It will take that long to get on a list.

Then go to tournaments and watch other teams race. If you see
a dog that really impresses you, go talk to the owner. Ask them
where they came from. Most people are very happy to talk about
their dogs. Ask if there are siblings running Flyball. If so, hunt
down the owners of those dogs and talk to them. Don’t limit
yourself to one breeding, do your homework.

Next, contact the breeder. Find out if they are repeating the breeding
you are interested in. They may have other breedings that you may
want to look at. It’s a good idea to go with a repeat breeding that
has produced good results. Try to avoid getting a dog from the
first breeding, but don’t discount it. We have pups from breedings
by Rival Kennels in Ontario, OnTarget here in Dallas (twice),
Bo-Tyne in Ontario, Offsping in Illinois and Moy Hall in Ontario.
There are several other great breeders out there.

Breeders like their puppies to be successful. It’s great advertising
for their litters. Getting on a top list is a matter of working your
way up the Flyball food chain. You need to be on a good club,
with a good training program. You need to have success with
your past dogs. You basically need to show that you are ready
and willing to put the effort into training your dog to be it’s best.

Once you are on the list, there will come a time to pick your puppy.
This can be nerve racking. You have to wait for the people on the
list before you to pick. It’s tough to see your favorite puppy go
elsewhere. But be patient and do your best to pick the right puppy
when it is time. We’ve picked pretty low on the list at times, but
always came up with a good puppy. Why? Because 80% of the
people ahead of you on the list will pick “the red dog” or “the
split face” or “the big male”, rather than picking based on quality.
Don’t pick based on color or markings. Don’t pick based on
sex unless your home environment dictates that you should
only pick a puppy of a particular sex.

When picking a puppy, you have to look at the temperament and
the body. Of these, the body is the more important. The dog’s body
will be the limiting factor in a dog’s potential performance. Most
of the fastest dogs in Flyball do not have perfect bodies, but all
of these dogs lack any severe deficiencies. A very poor body
should cross a dog off your list. In the end, you might chose the
dog with the Good body over the dog with the Excellent body,
based on it’s personality and temperament. It has been said it
is much easier to teach a dog to have drive than to teach it to
have good shoulders. This is true, but teaching a dog with no
drive to have drive is pretty hard. Make sure you look for a puppy
with a Good body and Good drive, and have confidence your
training will take it the rest of the way.

So, how do you assess a puppies body? It amazes me, but some
of the top people in this sport can tell very much about and adult
based on a tiny puppy. We aren’t at the level. We can tell the
difference between an Excellent and a Poor body, but choosing
between two very similar bodies is difficult. If possible, get help.
It might be worth the money to get an expert to advise you and
help assess the puppy. They can put the puppy in a stacked
stance and feel the structure. This helps immensely. We had
excellent advisors when picking Sly and it really made the process
better. It should be noted that even an expert cannot detect
hip dysplasia and going to a reputable breeder does not eliminate
the possibility.

When looking at a puppy’s body, the shoulders are particularly
important. Poor shoulders limit the dogs ability to run flat over jumps.
The shoulders should have good angulation, as close to 45 degrees
as possible. The shoulder blade and upper arm should be the same
length and all bones should be properly proportioned.
The rear end should have good angulation. There should be an
angle at the hock. Most important, the overall structure of the
dog should be balanced. All the parts should fit together so that
nothing stands out excessively (good or bad). If this is the case,
usually, the dog moves freely when walking, trotting, running
and spinning in both directions.

Now that you’ve ranked the bodies, look at the personalities.
There are a lot of misconceptions or misinterpretations that
can occur when assessing personality. For instance, a dog that
wanders off could either be independent or confident.
You want confidence, you don’t want independence, but it can
be very difficult to judge. Also, realize how the pack affects the
personalities of the dog. Sometimes a dog is quiet in the pack,
but is just being overshadowed by the more dominant personalities.
Sometimes a shy dog just doesn’t like the other dogs and
they open up when playing with you. Sometimes, they are just a
dud. So take each dog and play with a tug and with a ball.
Look at each one objectively. Look for a puppy that plays with
you, that shows interest in toys, and that bounces back. Avoid
them if it is difficult to get their attention, that wander off or
show no interest in toys.

So, rank your bodies, eliminate the ones with poor bodies,
factor in the personality, and pick the pup that is right for you.

Our most important advice: Once you’ve made your pick, be
happy with it. Do not compare your puppy to others of the same
litter. Don’t second guess. Just take that puppy into your home
and make them a part of your family. Love them and enjoy every
moment you have to spend with them.

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The Intangibles

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 19:03:25 -0500

It really is amazing how Flyball training techniques have progressed.
Seven years ago, my first flyball dog, Sadie, was a bit of a freak. She
picked it up in a few practices and was running the full course in a
month. Her first runs were about 4.8, I was amazed. Over time, she
worked her way down to be a consistent 4.2 dog, which was really
fast for an Australian Cattle Dog. She is still the most fun dog I have
ever run. Too bad she had to retire due to blindness (PRA).

Sonya and my first dog came out and ran 4.5 the first time. The
second ran 4.3. The third ran 4.1. The fourth and fifth ran 4.00 and
were running 3.9 in their second practice doing full runs. I attribute
this to improved training techniques. Through time, I think we’ve
learned how to give the dogs all the tools they need to come out
of the blocks blazing. They have racing instincts, a good box turn,
good striding, and an understanding that they are racing dogs.

While all of our dogs have or will reach 3.8 or better, I’ve come
to believe there are some things you just don’t have control over.
These are the intangibles that separate the good dogs from the
great dogs. Not to name names (Reflex, Flyer, Pirate, Pilot, Luna,
Moose, etc, etc), but these dogs seem to possess a different
mentality that sets them apart.

The great ones have no regard for their safety, and yet they seem
to be in complete control. They attack the box, only putting on the
brakes at the last instant, sliding at times, but still managing to
have a good box turn.

The great ones understand the game, they are there to win. They
run their best in the last race of the day on Sunday when the
tournament is on the line.

The great ones will come back from adversity, whether they are
two jumps early or whether they collide with another dog. They
bound back quickly and are running great times again.

Our girl Sadie definitely had the mentality to be great, but my
training skills kept her from it. Some of our recent dogs have
the training, they have all the tools, the great athleticism, but I
don’t know if they have the mentality to be great. Hopefully,
our babies do, but time will tell. I believe it’s up to them, not me.

So that brings up the question, to what extent can you instill that
killer mentality in a puppy? What can we do to bring out the most
in our dogs? Is it possible to teach a dog to ATTACK the box and
absolutely REFUSE to lose? Or is that something that is just born
into them.

Personally, I tend to believe that it is something dogs either have
or they don’t have. All the great trainers in the Flyball world have
some dogs that never made the cut, regardless of how hard they
tried. They give the dogs all the tools and hope for the best.

Again, we really don’t know, but we’re not ones to leave it to nature.
So here are some tips that you might use to try to develop that
killer mentality in your dog:

Treat your dog like it’s a champion, expect it to be a champion. Don’t settle.
Put it in situations where it can win, let it beat some slower dogs first. Work up to the faster dogs, they need to experience success before failure.
If your puppy steals a ball from an older dog, don’t scold it, say “GOOD!”. Be reasonable, don’t let the puppy be an ass, but encourage it to be competitive.
Don’t let older dogs beat up on your puppy, YOU dictate pack order. You are the pack leader, make the puppy know that it is safe.
MAKE your dog handle adversity, praise it immensely when it does. Teach it to bounce back, teach it that life goes on.
Don’t ask them to do something it isn’t ready for, give them all the tools first. Don’t let your dog blow up on the box. A great boxturn is priority 1A, 1B and 1C.
Don’t be disappointed if your dog is just awesome and not stupendous, love them just the same. They WILL give you everything they can, and that’s enough.

And remember, as usual, I’m probably full of crap...

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All About Striding

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:07:10 -0600

If you haven’t check out Inside Flyball lately, please give it a try.
We’re going to be contributing Training Tips on a monthly basis
until our brains run out of ideas.

If you happened to read the last Inside Flyball issue,
we recommended a method to teach small dogs how to single stride.
Even for big dogs, proper striding is essential for a dog to reach their
maximum potential and doesn't come without some effort.

The biggest problems occur in three areas:
- Taking off way too far from the first jump.
- Not running smoothly over the jump.
- Poor striding off the box.

Let's take a look at those first two problems and leave the third for a later date.
We've seen various techniques applied to solve these problems. Some work
and some don't. Sometimes it is dependent on the dog, so it's always good to
have a few different techniques available until you find one that works.

One technique we do not recommend is "laying sticks on the ground". When
a dog takes off too far from the first jump, the concept is to lay sticks on the
ground before that jump to teach the dog to hop over the stick and therefore
take off from a location closer to the jump. We've never really seen this
technique work. For some dogs, it may cause the dog to jump even further
from the jump. Other dogs will approach tentatively and jump from the right
place but they are slower overall. It also teaches them to jump the start line.

Another technique that we only rarely use is "holding a pole over the dogs head".
Usually, the pole is held three or four feet high about six to ten feet from the first
jump. This pole is intended to teach the dog not to jump as soon, because if they
do they would hit the pole. We have seen some success with this technique but
it can also take a lot of enthusiasm out of the dog. If the dog is soft, it's not a good
technique. Once the pole is gone, the dog may or may not go back to what it was
doing before.

The first thing we try to teach the dog is how to properly adjust it's stride to properly
enter the jumps regardless of where the dog is released. Dogs are gifted athletes.
They should start adjusting their stride from the point that they are released so
that by the time they get to the first jump, they are properly setup for their entry.
Through many hours of video tape, we've noticed there are some spots that
seem to be easy for certain dogs. We have medium sized Border Collies. A couple
spots we use are 25 feet and 32 feet. It seems that when we release the dogs
at these spots, they have great takeoffs, but if we release from 29, they will
jump too far from the jump. So, when we are doing recalls, we will release
from the following locations: 25, 25, 24, 26, 25. Over time, we might work our
way to: 25, 24, 26, 23, 27. We're subtly teaching the dog how to adjust it's stride.

We also do many chase recalls with our dogs. We release a fast veteran dog
first and then release the younger dog right on their tail. The younger dog will
tend to focus on the veteran dog and follow it right into the jumps. Usually
the striding is not an issue because the young dog isn't thinking about the jump.

The other part of the puzzle is power jumping over 12 jumps. Yep, we line up
12 jumps and do chase recalls with two, three, four, five dogs. The dogs go flying
through the jumps. At first, they may find great difficulty at around jump eight.
Over time, they learn the rhythm of the jumps. They quicken their stride and they
learn to land right in the middle of the two jumps. It helps them flatten out considerably.
We don't start our puppies over 12 jumps until they are almost a year old, they just
don't seem to be physically ready for it before that. Once they start, we almost
immediately see a dramatic improvement in their striding. Remember, five sets
of 12 jumps is like 15 sets of 4 jumps! They are getting a great workout and they
really love it.

For us, having fun is really the key. That's why we try to focus on fun things and
we tend to stay away from the stop signs like poles. Dogs learn best when they
don't realize they are learning.

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One Year Later

Wed, 30 Jan 2008 13:43:13 -0600

We just returned from racing at the Gambler’s tournament in Alabama
and we had a great time. Several people mentioned that they missed our
Blog, which has been pretty idle lately. We’re sorry for being away so long.
After the championship, we had to take a little time to regroup. We put a
lot of effort into preparing for the championship and we ran really well but
got our butt’s kicked. It was still an honor to be there.

Our first year in existence was a really exiting time. For the first time, we
were able to try out all the training methods that we’ve thought about in
the past. We found that some worked and some didn’t work and we found
that there were some things that we did in the past that we need to keep
doing and some that we don’t need to keep doing. Passing Drills came to
mind. Personally, I hate passing drills, but we’ve found that was one of our
weaknesses. Now we do passing drills on a weekly basis. Our head to head
racing has really been paying off though. Our little kids are pushing each
other to into new territory, so we’re going to keep doing that.

Well, we aren’t the types to be content so we are back and ready to make
the next step. This process began in Alabama when we decided to pull most
of our veteran dogs and run four green dogs along with two token veterans.
The kids knew how to complete the course, and they’ve been to a couple
tournaments to prove that they understood the rules. They had never been
asked to really compete. Our mentor, who shall remain nameless, has urged
us to put some faith in our dogs and move forward with them. This is what
we did. The result was that all of our green dogs ran 4.1 or faster. We know
they all have a long way to go but we fully expect them to continue to improve.

Another thing we are trying to learn is what to worry about and what not
to worry about. Some problems will work themselves out on their own and
others will not. Knowing when to step in is the tough part. For example, our
little girl Ole is crappy at boxwork, she really is. Her boxturn is slow and it
hangs. We worked her and worked her and it just didn’t get faster. So we
said screw it and we let her run. It turns out that when she is racing another
dog, her turn is not slow at all, in fact, it’s starting to become quite impressive.
Technically, there are still some things she needs work on. She managed
to run a 3.73 in Alabama, so obviously it ain’t all bad. The truth is, she just
needed a chance to get out there and race. We’ve always been very intense
about creating a competitive spirit in our dogs. More than a perfect box
turn, we want a dog that has a desire to beat the dog in the other lane.
That’s why we start head-to-head race recalls and chase recalls when they
are seven weeks old. All phases of our training involve our dogs going head to
head with other dogs. This is something we strongly believe in.

Don’t let any phase of your training take the fun out of it for your dogs.
Be sure to allow your dog to utilize their natural abilities. Each dog is a
little different and has different strengths and weaknesses. To try to force
them into one mold will limit their potential. Instead, teach them the
fundamentals and trust them. Make sure they have a good boxturn and
good striding over the jumps, then give them a chance. Fix problems as
they occur, but don’t spend a lot of time fixing problems that don’t exist.
This is going to be our motto for the next couple months. We’ll let you know
how it goes.

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It’s all in the details

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 10:41:46 -0600

I have been involved in dog sports for over 10 years (my very first
obedience dog will turn 14 next month), and I have taught many different
types of dogs in various sports from agility to tracking to obedience to
herding to, finally, flyball. I have discovered something in training all those
dogs: details matter. In obedience, it DOES matter how you bring your
dog to the ring. If you let him pull on a leash to the edge of the
ring, then “pop” him with the choke chain when he won”t heel in
the ring, you are creating MAJOR confusion. If you let your herding dog
work other dogs, they learn very bad habits that carry over to working
livestock. Dogs can and do become “ring wise”, but in reality,
training is training. If you want your dog to perform a specific task,
then you consistently require him to perform that task no matter where
you are.

In flyball, that means that if you play fetch with a tennis ball to
exercise your dog, you need to have the dog bring the ball all the way
to you when he returns. Otherwise, why should he bring the ball all the
way back in flyball?

When you teach box turns, details matter. We have two dogs that were
trained by two different methods. They both have rock solid, very nice
box turns. One however comes down off the box. This sets him up very
nicely to take 3 strides into the jump on his return. The other powers
off the jump further out and takes two strides. As there is not a great
difference in their body styles or length of leg, I believe this
fundamental difference was due to the method used to train the turn.

Many trainers only worry about the foot placement on the box. “Are
they getting four feet up?” But equally important is the muscle
memory required for head placement. Make sure they go get the ball. If
they are turning their head before the ball is in their mouth, then you
have a problem. Some trainers use Velcro to ensure they “go get the
ball”. Other trainers fire the box the first time. We have used both
methods and find they both work well.

Which methods do we advocate? Whatever method you feel best able to
understand and teach. There is no magic method, but it is important to
note that all methods have pros and cons. Which one you feel confident
in teaching is the one you should use. Do, however, try to understand
those pros and cons and be able to work through them. Many trainers use
the current fad on training. They go to a seminar and take home the
tools to teach a “perfect turn”. They return to teach dog after dog
the proper turn. I worry, however, that they don’t understand WHY
something is taught the way it is. If you don’t understand why the
process works, the process won’t be successful. It’s not enough to
know the process, you have to understand the process.

Sometimes, you don’t know what details to worry about until after the
fact. A very good trainer once told me “some things naturally work
themselves out when the dog starts running, and other things you need to
worry about from the beginning.” Sounds simple, right. The problem
is knowing which details need to be observed and which ones need to NOT
be obsessed over. That seems to be the key to flyball. If I ever
figure it out, I’ll let you know.

Dogs are simple creatures that learn complex behaviors. Make them fun,
make them consistent, and you will have a fast flyball dog.

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Teammate Etiquette

Fri, 19 Oct 2007 08:05:12 -0500

Wow, our little Sure Shots is doing pretty darn good. We just returned
from Memphis, Tennessee where we competed against some, but not all,
of the fastest teams in flyball. I happened to watch a lot of the teams
that were running really fast, and a few teams that were running
somewhat slower. I wanted to see what they were doing in the lanes
during the races, what they did for warm ups before the races, and how
they left the ring after the race. After all, flyball is a team sport
and every aspect of the game needs to be looked at when you are building
a team that wants to compete at an elite level. I discovered an
interesting trend: Top teams work together in the lanes. They are
positive with each other. They encourage each other, they give positive
suggestions in the lanes, they encourage the dogs, they push the dogs,
they are excited and up beat.

Duh! you might be saying right now, and yes, I said duh when I first
noticed it. But it really isn’t a “duh” moment. Top teams have a
positive chemistry that permeates every aspect of what they are doing.
The walk to the lanes with a purpose, but they are flexible in that
purpose, flexible enough to adapt if a dog or handler needs to change
something at the last minute. They recognize the need to adapt
sometimes. They are considerate to each other in the lanes. They
don’t “go off” on each other. They DO yell in the lanes, you
have to in order to hear over the barking dogs, but they don’t fight
in the lanes. They congratulate the winners, and are graceful when
winning. They leave the ring as a team.

Now, I am sure, because teams are made up of individuals, the top teams
DO fight. I am sure they have even had disagreements in the racing
lanes, but the rest of us don’t know about it. Somehow they manage to
hide it from the spectators and other teams.

I have been involved in teams before, not just with flyball, where this
isn’t the case. Those teams never seem to make it to an elite level.
Guess respect does pay off in the end.

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Now where does that gutter go?

Thu, 27 Sep 2007 17:13:28 -0500

By now, most trainers are using props to help improve their dog’s
boxturns. Props for the front of the box, props for the side of the box,
props for the top of the box. Everyone seems to be putting something
in to help aid the dog in learning a safe, fast swimmers turn.
But, do most of us know WHERE to put the prop to actually
accomplish the goal? Sometimes I wonder.

Jump boards and props in front of the box, ideally are used to teach
the dog to get up onto the box so he can push off with the rear. That
seems simple enough, but how tall should the jump board be? This
depends greatly on how your dog approaches the box. We have a dog that
slinks in (at full speed yet) and his jump board started at 10 inches.
We wanted him to learn to get up really high on the box because we knew
he would fall lower on the box once the jump board was removed. Another
of our dogs is naturally high, so her jump board is around 7 inches
tall. You want to evaluate your dog’s natural tendencies and adjust
your jump board height accordingly. Remember, smaller dogs need
LARGER jump boards.

The stanchions are just as important as the jump board itself. The
stanchion can serve a purpose. It pushes the dog to one side of the box or
the other. If you have a dog that comes in too wide off the ball, a
stanchion on the dogs butt side will “push” the front of the dog
closer to the ball. If you have a dog that comes in almost on top of
the ball, thus having no room to turn, you can put a stanchion on the dogs
head to push him over off the ball a bit. A swimmers turn works because
the dog catches the ball in the middle of the arc as he turns,
placement of the front feet on the box is critical. Use the stanchions as
frames to place the dog at the right spot on the box face. If you
don’t like the arc of your dog’s turn, video the box turn with the
“trash” in and see what your props are doing to the placement of the
dog’s front feet on the box. Some dogs will “back out” of the turn if the
stanchion is too close to their head. In other words, they pull their head out
instead of arcing naturally back into the lane. If the dog is falling
off the back of the box, put a stanchion on his rear to encourage him to
get over on the box. But evaluate first, ideally, you can leave the
stanchions far away from the box and out of the picture.

Gutters are used, usually to remind the dog to get back into the center
of the lane quickly. We usually use them to teach a dog not to go
too wide as they come off the box. While the swimmer’s turn is an
arc back into the lane, you want to keep the radius of that arc pretty
small. A turn that has a large arc takes longer than one with a compact
arc. So, in addition to the stanchion-framed box, you have gutters to
aide the dog in it’s approach to the box. One on the side the dog
turns encourages the dog to turn tighter, a gutter on the side the dog
takes off from, encourages the dog to have an over all smaller arc as
he approaches the box.

Props on top of the box encourage the dog not get too high on the box.
If the arc of the swimmer’s turn is too high, the dog has to lean
down and catch the ball from the top. This throws the turn off and
causes the dog to stick or catch on the way down.

Another thing you need to consider when determining the placement of
the props is the dog’s natural “personal space”. Many, but
not all, border collies, because they are herding dogs, have a bigger
personal space zone. You can put a stanchion further away from
them and still have the desired effect. Other dogs have less personal
space and you have to put a prop almost on top of them to alter their
turn. Again, you have to evaluate your dog, the dog’s natural
inclinations, and adjust the box trash accordingly. Pay close attention
to how they react to your changes.

This brings up another huge problem: What happens when a dog
no longer respects the props? This usually happens when you
teach a dog a nice turn, then back them up 100 feet from the box
and let them hit it with a full head of steam. Your props become
splitters. If you repeat this enough, the dog will lose respect for
props. You’ve just lost your ability to influence your dog’s boxturn.
If the dog is crashing your props, move closer, don’t let them get
as much speed. Back up slowly as long as the dog maintains
the turn.

The goal of using props in training is to teach a dog to have a
beautiful turn without the props. Watch your video
of the dog with and without the props. Sometimes, your dog
will learn two different turns. If this happens, you need to adjust.
Perhaps you need a smaller jump board. You need to give the
dog enough leeway to do what comes natural, while retaining
enough control that you can assist them. Work with their
natural tendencies.

Our best advice is to video, video, video. See what the dog is
doing, and adjust the props accordingly.

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Retraining: Fact or Fiction

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 10:50:58 -0500

“That dog would be awesome IF YOU WOULD JUST FIX HIS BOX TURN”. That statement has been uttered probably more than any other in the sport of flyball. Yes, we have said it many times. The picture above is Robbie’s first Flyball dog, Sadie. She has all the speed and drive of any Border Collie we’ve ever trained, but that is obviously NOT a good box turn. Train-wreck is the best description. We’ve learned the hard way how difficult it is to retrain a boxturn.

If you consider how long flyball has been around and how far the training techniques have come, it's no wonder that many people are looking at experienced dogs and wondering “how do I help them run faster or safer or longer or any number of other ideas” That brings about the question: “What can I do to improve my dog?”

The problem with the question is that it doesn't address a simple fact: Dogs learn best what they learn first. (Actually, substitute most any trainable entity for “dog” ) It is extremely hard to change learned behavior—just ask anyone who is trying to diet. It takes will power and behavioral modifications to actually change a learned behavior.

Ok, Ok, so am I saying you CAN’T change behavior? No. I am suggesting that you examine the behavior you want to change and assess whether or not you are willing to do what is necessary to actually CHANGE the behavior. Then weigh that “will power” against the over all benefit of trying to change the behavior. (Translation: am I HONESTLY willing to do what is necessary to change this behavior?)

It simply is not effective to “retrain” a box turn while continuing to run the dog. You cannot overcome prior training by working once or twice a week at practice and then run the dog in a tournament. In a tournament, the dog will hit the box between 24 and 40 times in a weekend (more if you are the start dog). In practice the dog will hit the box with the prop in place at most 10-15 times in a week. You cannot change behavior that way. The old box turn is reinforced—by continuing to run flyball and the new box turn cannot be reinforced, as it doesn't appear yet. It hasn't been taught in a competition/high intensity setting.

Realistically, to retrain your dog, you probably have to pull your dog from competition for a longer period of time than it has been running. If your dog has run for six months, are you willing to pull your dog from competition for a year? I have never met a “first time” Flyballer that is willing to make this commitment.

IF your dog is harming himself, then I would strongly suggest that you pull the dog and teach a new turn. If the dog isn't harming himself and you simply want a faster dog, I would examine the dedication you have verses the reality of actually changing the behavior. Only you can decide if you have the dedication to try to change a pattern. Even then, realistically you must face the fact that it may never happen.

So what can you do? You can work with your dogs natural turn and try to influence it. If the dog is coming in too straight, you can give it a knee to help move it over. If your dog has too much speed coming in, you can start from closer and don’t run in the start position. These little tweaks will help you get a little more out of your dog. It’s more effective to tweak a dog than to retrain one.

I am sure there are dogs out there that have proven this to be false. They have been “retrained” and are as good as if they learned it the first time around. Unfortunately, these dogs are few and far between. Like those 3.6 dogs, they exist, but are extremely rare. I'm not saying don't try, just be realistic with your expectations.

And don’t forget to have fun with your dog. Don’t let your expectations cloud your view. We love running our girl Sadie, even with her bad box turn. Rather than getting down on your dog, consider it a learning experience and get a puppy.

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Designer Dogs in Flyball

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 14:40:30 -0500

Designer Dogs are not new to Flyball and if you are in the sport, expect to see plenty more of them. There is a reason for this and that reason is speed. Look at the U-Fli Top 10 Singles of all time. There are four Border Collies on this list, as you would expect since Border Collies basically have dominated the sport for years. There are five mixed breed’s in the Top 10, most of these are of the Designer Dog variety. In this article, we’d like to review the state of Designer Dogs in Flyball and dispel some of the myths about them.

Let’s get some terminology straight first. Here are some definitions from dictionary.com:

Mutt - an inferior dog or one of mixed breed. A mongrel dog.

Mongrel - a dog of mixed or indeterminate breed.

Hybrid - the offspring of two animals or plants of different breeds, varieties, species, or genera, esp. as produced through human manipulation for specific genetic characteristics.

Comet (left), Shatter (right)

This first Designer Dogs I ever saw were Border Jacks. These little dynamic dogs physically look a lot like Jacks but they have some of the markings of a Border Collie. In general, they can be almost as fast as pure Border Collies and almost as small as pure Jacks. This makes them ideal Height Dogs. Few pure bred dogs could compete with the speed of these little dogs. Their compact body can allow them to be very quick on the box. They are intelligent, and must be mentally challenged. Their personality seems to be more Terrier than Border Collie. Border Jack litters can vary quite a bit, with some dogs taking on more of the Jack traits and others are more like little Border Collies. Some look like fast Beagles, some like Mini-Border Collies and some like leggy Jacks. Border Terriers are also used instead of the Jack to create Border Borders. These are similar but with a different coat. Border Jacks have been around long enough that they are starting to become a new breed (i.e. breeding Border Jacks to Border Jacks). The intent appears to develop a breed with more consistently desirable characteristics by selecting which parents should be bred.

Vixen (left), Sniper (center), Maverick (right)

Sniper’s litter-mates

A little later, the Border Staffy appeared. These dogs are a little bigger than Border Jacks. They may or may not be a height dog. If you get one, don’t count on it being a height dog in NAFA. They have a combination of long legs and powerful muscles that makes them very fast, equal to a Border Collie and in some cases faster. Their powerful build also helps with a strong box turn. They can attack the box harder without crumpling their legs. This could also lead to longer careers. Border Staffies litters seem to be quite consistent since they tend to take specific traits from each breed (coat, head shape, ears, legs, musculature). I haven’t seen any Border Staffies bred to Border Staffies, but I suspect such a breeding would result in less consistent litters (see Gregor Mendel’s early experiments). As such, the Border Staffy is truly a Hybrid.

The newcomer is the Whippet Mix. These dogs have amazing speed over jumps, generally far superior to any other dogs. The mix is generally designed to add a little more trainability to the Whippet. Whippets are sight hounds and can be trained to do Flyball, and when properly trained, they are among the fastest dogs. It does take a special trainer, and not just anyone can train one. Adding some Border Collie characteristics makes it easier to train them. Their weakness is generally their box turn. Their legs don’t bend like Border Collies and most look a little awkward on the box. Expect to see more Whippet Mixes in the sport over the next few years. It appears these mixes are being bred back together and with other mixes. Whippet genes are very dominant. Most Whippet mixes look a lot like Whippets. It will take multiple generations to get the right mixture of speed and bidability.

Also, expect to see more Pure Mixes in Flyball. Flyball breeding has given rise to the Double Border , Border Staffy, Whippet, Jack mix. It’s kinda fun to come up with the names, it’s like ordering a drink from Starbucks, “I’ll have a Double Border Border Jack with a dash of Staffy”. Some of these dogs are very good, and some are not so good. There is such a hodgepodge of genetics at work, you are rolling the dice when you get one. Through successive generation of selective breeding, the Pure Flyball Mix will likely become a new breed.

Also remember, the dogs I’m talking about here are very highly sought after. We are not talking about backyard breeders here. Just as much care goes into selecting a mating pair for these breedings as would in any “pure bred” breeding. To get on a list for one of these elite dogs, you probably have to know someone. These dogs DO NOT end up in shelters, they end up on teams that are pushing for world records. This article is not meant to advocate or denigrate Flyball Mixes, just to inform.

My People!

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 10:36:38 -0500

Sniper, On Target's Sure Shot, is a Border Staffy. His mother is a Border Collie and his sire is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier. Yes, he is one of those dogs that was created solely for the purpose of running in flyball. And, he is absolutely the best dog we have ever owned. We love him so much we named our club after him.

Sniper playing, sleeping and loving

At this point people will say things like “how could you breed a dog for something as frivolous as a dog sport?” or “that is horrible, to create a dog just for a sport.” or “with so many dogs in shelters and put down every year, why would you purposely ruin two breeds of dogs” The answer we have is probably not going to be liked by some of these people: Because he is absolutely the best dog we have ever owned.

Border Staffies are a unique breed. They have ALL the drive of a Border Collie, they are smart (but not too smart), they want to please, they want to work; they have all the determination of a terrier, they will keep going until they accomplish their goal, they don't quit, they are small but powerful. In the flyball ring, that is perfect. They are fairly easy to train, they are fast, they are single minded, and they want to please. At home, there is an added benefit: they are easy easy easy to live with. Sniper is the most laid-back, easy going dog. Our puppies chew on him, our older dogs lay on him, nothing seems to faze him. He is happiest when laying between Robbie and me while watching TV.

For those that say: “Sniper is just one example, all dogs are different, that's why Border Staffies are not a breed—temperament is not uniform”, I would have to disagree. I have had the pleasure of meeting and training with MANY teams that have MULTIPLE Border Staffies on their clubs and, everyone says the same thing.

We have seven Border Collies and one Border Staffy. Poor Sniper, when we are about to leave we say “OK, All the Border Collies in the Fun Room” (which is a room where the dogs go while we are gone). Sniper looks at us and tries to decide if he should go, then he slowly wanders in, still uncertain. When we were in Nevada at a pool party attended by almost a dozen Border Staffies. Sniper was running and swimming, and suddenly stopped and looked around. You could see it in his face: “These are My People”. He was so happy. Then, off he swam, chasing the tennis ball “one of his people” was about to snag from right in front of him. Border Staffies, after all, are very competitive.

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Warm-Up Dogs

Wed, 15 Aug 2007 10:21:34 -0500

Part of the training process is exposing green dogs to new situations that cannot be re-created in practice. One of the benefits is ring experience. The racing ring environment is highly charged. When our dogs are ready, we place them on a team to warm up, even if they are not doing full-runs. We start them out doing recalls from 2 jumps. If they are successful, we move them to 3 jumps and then doing recalls off the box. If the dog goes around or crosses into the other lane, we move up and start over again. Green dogs need to be successful in the ring. Be sure to have a couple people around to point the green dog in the right direction if the dog crosses over into the other lane. The dog’s owner should be a happy safe haven for the dog and the ring should always be a very positive place.

Another benefit is exposure and distractions. The dogs need to be exposed to different tournament facilities. The larger the venue and tournament, the bigger the challenge becomes. Recently, Spree warmed up at one of the largest dog shows in the country. This provided superb distraction training. The crowds were loud, clapping and cheering for the dogs. There were children pulling back the curtains, sticking their feet in the racing ring and hanging over the rails. The venue echoed from the crowd noise and other events taking place. This acclimates the dog to working through various situations. By focusing on the handler, the dog learns to block out the distractions around her.

The greatest benefit to warming up new dogs is getting them race ready. The dogs get to feel what it is like and how much fun it is to be in the ring. After a tournament, I thanked a visiting judge for allowing a green dog extra time. He told me he thought it was the most important thing he could do to advance that dog’s training. “If the racing dogs are eating up all the warm-up time and there is a green dog waiting, I will always give that dog a chance to warm up. If I don’t give them the opportunity to learn in the ring, they will never race.” He felt very strongly about the benefits the new dogs receive from participating in a tournament.

Stretch your dog’s brain. Build upon a positive experience in the ring. Have fun in the ring with your puppy. This will carry forward to your next practice session. Above all set them up to succeed and let the dog have fun warming up in the ring.

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